Quarantine. For our ancestors, I am sure the word was terrifying. No antibiotics, no immunizations and if your little ones caught whatever dread disease was making the rounds, there was a good chance you'd lose at least one of them. The other day a photo of a tombstone was posted in the Kansas History Geeks Facebook group. The stone is in Oak Hill Cemetery in Lawrence, Kansas. It tells a tragic tale. It reads:
Beloved Children
 |
Shepp Stone, Oakhill Cemetery, Lawrence, KS
(Photo Courtesy of Melissa Luann Miller) |
Charles M.
Born Feb. 21, 1873,
Died Nov. 1, 1884.
------
Edith A.
Born Oct. 25, 1877,
Died Nov. 15, 1884.
------
Mary E.
Born Sep. 3, 1871,
Died Nov. 22, 1884.
------
William H.
Born Oct. 27, 1879
Died Dec. 3, 1884
-----
Joseph W.
Born Apr. 4, 1870
Died Dec. 8, 1884
-----
Children of
B. & M.I. Shepp.
 |
| Lawrence Daily Journal, Thursday, 11 December 1884 |
I searched and found a few newspaper clippings that told the tale of the Shepp children. They all died of diphtheria. Their father had also suffered from the disease, but he recovered. I cannot imagine the despair of Mrs. Shepp, nursing her husband and babies and burying almost all of them, one by one.
Thankfully we live in a much more advanced time. As children, most of us received immunizations against diphtheria and other diseases that took so many in the past. As I type this blog post, scientists all over the world are working to create an immunization for COVID-19. With the amazing technology we have today, I have no doubt that they will come up with something soon. Until then, we need to stay home. Instead of quarantine, it's now called "Social Distancing". So settle in at home. Get cozy. Read a good book you've been neglecting. Write a letter. Start a journal. Or, better yet, work on your genealogy!
Have you started looking into your ancestors? No better time than the present to get started. All you need is your computer, internet access and maybe a pen and paper to jot down notes. You can get free trial memberships to most genealogy sites that you can use for the week or two you are home. If you think it's something you might really get into, download a free trial genealogy software program to help you keep track. I use RootsMagic and they have a great free version. If you really get into genealogy, I recommend upgrading to the paid version, for there are so many cool features in it.
Start with yourself. Put in your birth date and location. Then go to your spouse and add your children. Once your immediate family is in, it's time to start climbing that family tree. Put in your parents. ALWAYS use maiden names, so put in your dad and your mom with her maiden name. Add their birth dates, marriage information, your siblings. Type in their death and burial information if pertinent. Pick a parent and go back another generation. Keep going until you've put in all you know. You can search for burial information on www.findagrave.com. It's a free site - go ahead and register so you can add information, put on memorial flowers and create memorials for those without them.
Ancestry.com is the granddaddy of genealogy websites. There is a plethora of amazing information there, but it needs to be used with caution. Don't just copy information from other people's family trees. I make it a practice to not even look at other trees. So many people don't pay close attention to the people they are adding to their trees and there are so many mistakes in them. Stick with the actual records - census, birth records, marriage licenses, city directories, death certificates. Another site that is awesome for genealogy is familysearch.org. It is entirely free, but you'll need to register before you use it. It is the site run by the LDS church and they have millions of church records and other primary sources digitized. As with Ancestry, stay away from the user added family trees.
If you live here in Kansas, you have free access to all Kansas newspapers on www.newspapers.com. You will need to access the site by first going to the Kansas State Historical Society page. (www.kshs.org). Click on Research. Then click Digital Newspapers. You'll find the link on that page. You will be required to put your driver's license or KS ID number in. They aren't trying to steal your identity or anything. They just want to confirm that you are indeed a Kansas resident. The glorious thing is that ALL KANSAS NEWSPAPERS, that's right, ALL OF THEM, are digitized and online up to about 1922!!! Take some time and read some of the old newspapers in the town your ancestors lived in, during their lifetimes. It is so much fun to read old papers and find out who great granddad palled around with or what social organizations grandma took part in. Times were different and they put EVERYTHING in the paper: Sunday dinners; card parties; family reunions. It's all there, waiting for you to find it.
Take the time to visit your ancestors. You'll learn so much about where you come from and who made you the person you are. It's a great way to spend some free time and keep your mind occupied. I use my research time to escape daily and have for almost three years while I am at home caring for my aging parents. You wanna get away? Give genealogy a try. You won't be sorry.
